Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Category: Weekday Homilies

  • Seek the face of God Today

    Seek the face of God Today

    Advertisements

    October 23, 2020 – Friday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102320.cfm)

    Homily

    The words of Jesus in today’s Gospel, sound quite harsh but simple. He said, “You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky; why you do not know how to interpret the present time?” The crowd that gathered around Jesus were very slow to recognize the person in front of them. The kingdom of God has come in the person of Jesus. The face of God has already been revealed. Yet, the people were not able to understand the signs revealed in the ministry of the Lord.

    What could have prevented them? What was the cause of the blindness of the people or of their indifference towards the Lord?

    The crowd that gathered around Jesus, most of them, were perhaps became only intrigued of the works of Jesus. The Lord who became popular among the people because of his works and preaching, were sought after by the people. Others wanted to meet him to be healed, to get answers for the questions of their life, others must have been there in order to witness something spectacular from Jesus.

    However, many of them, did not really understand who was before their eyes. Many failed to see God working in the ministry and in the life of Jesus. This must have been caused by that limited understanding of the people.

    This limited understanding was caused by the biases, preconceived notions and uncompromising belief about God that hardened the heart and mind of the people. For example, the people saw Jesus as merely a prophet, or a healer, a preacher, a reformer or a carpenter. People were so fixated that God was distant and cannot become closer to the people. The people believed in a God who easily get angry, violent and aggressive. The Pharisees and scholars of the law promoted a belief in a God who is untouchable. Hence, sinners and sick people were removed from the community.

    These are just some possibilities that prevented people from recognizing the Lord and understanding the signs of God’s grace in the present. There are still many others that until now have gripped us from reading and recognizing those signs of God’s grace for us.

    Hence, on our part, we might fall to the same failure of the people as we also bury ourselves into our past mistakes, into our habitual sins, into feelings of hopelessness and despair, into guilt and fear, into our anger and hatred, into our abusive tendencies, into our selfish intentions. When we yield even into one of these, then, we could also become dismissive of God’s presence and ignorant to God’s manifestation in the present moment.

    Today, Jesus wants us to become a people who longs to see God’s face and able to accept God’s grace today. This is what our Psalm proclaims today, “Seek the face of the God of Jacob.” Let us seek God’s face and enjoy God’s presence among our friends and family members, with God’s creation and all the things that surround us now. As we recognize the Lord, let the Lord challenge us and move us to go beyond ourselves. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • Disturb our complacency, O Lord

    Disturb our complacency, O Lord

    Advertisements

    October 22, 2020 – Thursday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102220.cfm)

    Homily

    We desire for peace. We long for harmony. We want a life without disturbances and troubles. This is the reason why we also ask God for peace of mind and peace in our homes because in one way or another, we are experiencing some sort of difficulties. One may be having some sleepless nights because of some personal or family issues or conflicts and misunderstanding. Another must be bothered by an illness or because of demands at work. Some students these days, must be having some troubles too in fulfilling their school projects and finishing their modules.

    However, one may be disappointed with what Jesus told us in today’s Gospel. The Lord said, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.”

    We heard it right. Jesus does not bring peace but division. He is here to disturb us. Yet, what does he really mean? It is very important that we understand the words of Jesus in the context of those who wanted to follow him. The very environment where Jesus spoke these words was characterized by corrupt and self-righteous leaders. The Pharisees and the scholars of the law represented those people who wanted to stay in power, preserve the status quo and secure their comfort. There were Jewish leaders too who became puppets to the Roman Empire in order to secure their wealth and influence.

    And these people who succumbed to the cycle of corruption at the expense of the common people, did not want anybody to challenge their peace. Thus, anyone who will dare to confront them was deemed to be a threat to that peace they were enjoying. However, was this “true peace” at all?

    This peace is about the comfort and routine of life or ‘business-as-usual.’ This means that one goes and proceeds to what one usually does in life. We may do what we want by satisfying our desires, from mere complacency. This peace only knows about maintaining the status quo, that we are comfortable with and preserving an environment that will not disturb us. Yet, this peace is shallow and remains self-centered. It focuses on our ego. This is not true peace.

    That is why, the Lord comes to disturb us when we have grown so attached with our comforts and when we are so caught up with maintaining to what is only beneficial for us.

    When we become complacent and passive, we do not want to be challenged, we do not want to go beyond and become life-giving. We do not want to confront ourselves and others because it might cost us conflict and division or to sacrifice the contentment that we apparently enjoy. We might find ourselves to settle to what is only easy, comfortable and beneficial by doing the same things, thinking the same thoughts and imagining the same ideas to the point that we refuse to do more and give more.

    However, Jesus does not want us to just settle with this seemingly peaceful environment. God does not want us to become a person who becomes a prisoner of his/her own selfish desires who will become abusive and corrupt yet  most insecure. Jesus does not want us also to just go with the flow and remain passive.

    The Lord wants us to find freedom. Jesus is not in favor in making ourselves passive, complacent, and self-satisfied yet stagnant. Jesus wants us to grow, to be mature and to become the person He wants us to be.

    The invitation for us is to allow the Lord to touch and to disturb our complacency and passivity so that we will be able to see things differently and wonderfully. As Christians, we too are called to call and confront others when our community and our leaders become passive and complacent.

    As we allow the Lord to disturb us, we may be able to see new perspectives in life despite its monotony, more dynamic and life-giving ways of relating with people around us, and a deeper and life-changing encounter with God through the ordinary expression of our faith. And remember, this calls us to be pro-active, honest and courageous in expressing our faith and to the values that we believe as Christians. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • God Loves To Surprise Us

    God Loves To Surprise Us

    October 21, 2020 – Wednesday, 29th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102120.cfm)

    Homily

    What’s the difference between pranking and surprising someone? If we would scan our Facebook wall, prank videos are all over. These prank videos, though they may cause laughter and entertainment to the viewers, but these are malicious and mischievous acts played on someone. Some pranks are simple but others are way beyond simple tricks, but too much. These cause embarrassment and humiliation, shock and dismay or anger and irritation to people being tricked. A prank has no intention at all to bring joy to the person.

    A surprise, on the other hand, is to strike with wonder or amazement especially because it is unexpected (Merriam-Webster definition). A surprise brings joy not just to people around but also to the person being surprised. That’s why we like a good surprise for our loved ones particularly during special occasions. Surprises do not only flatter the heart of the person being loved, but, surprises also create true creativity and bonding among friends, families and lovers.

    Our God does not prank us. God would not dare to bring us into humiliation and embarrassment just for entertainment. What God loves, is to surprise us.

    This is something that we discover in today’s scripture readings. The Gospel of Luke, as it proclaims an image of God’s final judgment on us and delivering punishment for those who are wicked and rewarding the righteous, however, it is not just limited to this. This particular passage of Luke also conveys to us how the Lord loves to surprise us. Definitely, the Gospel invites us to be attentive to God’s surprises.

    God comes to us and reveals Himself to us in the way we would not expect it to be. That’s why it is a surprise. It is unexpected but with the intention to bring joy. St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians, gave us the hint on how he experienced such a surprise from Jesus. The Lord revealed himself to Paul on the road to Damascus when he was in search of Christians to be persecuted. That surprise from Jesus changed the whole life of Paul. It was in that surprise that Paul truly encountered the Lord and was converted to Jesus. Paul called this, revelation, a grace given to him. This grace that filled Paul is now being shared to others.

    This is the invitation for us today. We are called to be attentive and to make ourselves available to the many surprises of God. We need the eyes of faith to believe in the God of surprises. God will never prank and make us embarrassed. God would only surprise us to bring joy and peace.

    Thus, God may call us to serve and love Him in the way we have never thought about or to do something which was unthinkable before. God may reveal His presence to us in the most ordinary ways and to ordinary persons who are already familiar to us. God may answer our prayer through the help and generosity of an unexpected friend or even through a stranger. God may bring us joy through a simple gift from a person we love or through reconciliation and peace offered to us by the person we have hurt or those who have hurt us. God may surprise us through the embrace and acceptance of people around us. And like Paul, the Lord may also surprise us in the way that it will challenge and change our beliefs, attitudes and the way we look at things.

    Be always mindful of God’s daily dose of surprises.

    There are many possibilities of God surprising us. Let us allow, then, the Lord to surprise us today and every day. Grab and welcome those surprises from God by exercising a greater awareness of what surrounds us. Having those experiences will make us more confident in our relationship with God. Do not just be passive or complacent or indifferent. Be always mindful of God’s daily dose of surprises.

    I invite you now to spend a time of recollection or of silence each day even in a short moment of 5 to 10 minutes before you end your day. Spend these few minutes to recollect on how God gave us the grace of surprise during the day. Thank the Lord for the grace and never forget to share your grace of surprise to people around you so that we too shall become God’s surprise for others. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • Our Experiences of Waiting

    Our Experiences of Waiting

    October 20, 2020 – Tuesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102020.cfm)

    Homily

    We must have experienced in many ways the reality of waiting. These days, many have exercised their patience to wait for the arrival of their item ordered online. Others may have experienced to wait outside before they can enter a establishment because of the enforced health protocols. Others may be waiting for their medical result that causes anxiety because it may not be too good. Others too may be waiting to be given attention by their loved one and be given a chance to be loved again. Others also may be waiting to be forgiven and hoping to be embraced. Today, the whole human family is also waiting for the vaccine to be fully developed in order to fight Covid-19.

    These are just few examples of waiting that we experience daily. Some forms of waiting may be small and simple, but some could mean a long waiting, a tiring waiting and a painful waiting.

    With this reality of waiting in our life, there is another form of waiting and welcoming that is fairly significant for us to be given importance and attention. This is the “waiting of the Lord’s everyday coming” and “welcoming him daily.”

    Indeed, the Lord comes to us and also waits that he will be welcomed by us. This is portrayed today through the story in the Gospel. Jesus declares how blessed are those servants who awaits the return of their master because the presence of the master means something very great. Jesus gives us the image of the presence of the master who serves his servants and enjoys the company of his servants.

    Jesus emphasizes the importance to await and to be vigilant at all times to welcome him when he comes. The attitude of anticipating and being attentive to God’s coming is characterized by a joyful manner. Thus, to expect and to wait Jesus’ coming does not only require us to sit straight, but also to expect him with joy and with a dose of surprise.

    Let us remember, God’s manifestations of his presence and the revelations of his grace are done even in silence. Consequently, when God reveals himself, it is simple, humble and even ordinary.

    Again, Jesus reminds us today in the Gospel “blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival,” because the master himself brings peace. This is affirmed also today in our first reading. Paul tells us in his letter to the Ephesians that, “Christ is our peace.” Moreover, our Psalm also proclaims to us, “The Lord speaks of peace to his people.”

    Therefore, Jesus wants us to await and be always attentive to his many surprises for us and to his simple revelations in us, in our daily life – wherever we are. Jesus calls us to expect, anticipate and await with joy his everyday coming to assure us of his abiding and ever-faithful presence. It is God’s promise that he brings peace to us to dispel the worries and anxieties, the boredom and the tiredness in our hearts from waiting, from whatever kind of waiting we may be enduring this moment.

    As we wait and welcome the Lord, may our daily encounter with him become life-changing and reassuring. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • The danger of being possessed by greed

    The danger of being possessed by greed

    October 19, 2020 – Monday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101920.cfm)

    Homily

    To possess material wealth is not evil. Material wealth is God’s gift to us. However, material wealth becomes a problem if we would allow this to possess us. This becomes problematic especially among families who have wealth to inherit. This causes conflicts and misunderstanding that would even reach to lawsuits and broken family relations. This is something we have heard in today’s Gospel from a man who asked Jesus to help him so that he too will have a share from his family inheritance. Indeed, we might believe that to possess so much wealth will give us security and joy.

    However, this is not the case because the more we possess things, the more we also become insecure and anxious. Just observe ourselves. The more a person possess wealth, the more the person becomes defensive. High walls are built to protect a rich house, sometimes with electric current running 24/7 on barb wires and with a 24-hour security personnel. And when the person becomes unaware of his/her unquenchable desire to possess more, then, the heart turns greedy and insecure, and even corrupt and oppressive.

    Jesus warns us of our tendency to be greedy and the danger of being possessed by greed. Greed comes from a heart that believes in self-containment and self-satisfaction and that desires total independence from God. But then, material things could never quench our greatest desire to be satisfied and fulfilled. Thus, a person will tend to accumulate more and possess more even at the expense of others.

    This is how the cycle of corruption and oppression happen. When our desire becomes unsatisfiable, we become greedy of many things, who will tend to collect as many material things and wealth us much as possible.

    Such attitude will not just appear in our heart out of nowhere. Sometimes, this has something to do from our childhood memories. A child who has been deprived from many things particularly of essential things in the child’s development such us food, shelter, toys and clothing and even affection and love from parents, may become a form of emptiness in the heart of a child. When the child becomes adult, that kind of experience could give the person the anxiety to be deprived again. Hence, in order to gratify such anxiety, the person could become a hoarder who accumulate things and possessions.

    When this happens too, a hoarder or a greedy person is blinded to see the needs of others. It will be difficult for the person to open up and be generous to those who are in need around him or her because the person feels insecure every time he or she gives.  The person would only look at his/herself and never to others. This is now an attitude of the heart that is truly being possessed by possessions.

    Thus, Jesus said, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” Jesus tells us that our life is more than our possessions.

    Be mindful, then, of our possessive attitudes because these may affect and endanger our relationships with our families, friends and colleagues.

    We may ask, what is it that possessed me? What are those that kept me from being free? We do not have to think of millions of pesos because even a single smartphone may possess us. Remember, when we put so much focus and attention to a material thing, it could make us indifferent, greedy and unkind towards others. Our attachment to a single smartphone may indeed, prevent us from giving more time, attention and focus towards our studies (for the students), or may prevent us from giving our affection and presence to our loved ones.

    We believe that what gives us true satisfaction, freedom, joy and contentment is a life with God. Jesus calls today to have a life with Him and to let go of whatever that possessed us because this is the way of making ourselves free and happy. Then, by being free, we shall be able to let ourselves be satisfied truly by the Lord himself. In response, our self-satisfaction from the Lord will lead us to recognize that everything we have is God’s blessing that must be shared to others. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR